Captive Serval Cat Seized After Fire At Louisiana Home

A fire at a home in Louisiana led to the seizure of a wild serval cat, which requires an exotic animal permit to legally possess in the state.

Jefferson Protection and Animal Welfare Services (JPAWS) said Jefferson Parish Firefighters responded on Sept. 15 to a fire at a home on Allo Avenue in Marrero and arrived to find the African wild cat in a fenced enclosure in the backyard.

JPAWS director Michelle Brignac and Humane Department head Victoria Clark were called to the scene to retrieve the “hissing” serval. They subdued the cat and “wrangled it into a cage” for transport.

Servals are native to sub-Saharan Africa and “like all wild cats, have a prey drive, territorial instincts, and need space and stimulation,” JPAWS said.

The organization said that although servals can be legally owned with the required exotic animal permit, they “do not make good pets.”

“They mark their territory and cannot be fully house-trained. They are destructive to furniture and have even been known to go through walls and doors. They typically become aggressive when they reach maturity,” JPAWS said. “In captivity they are under chronic stress, unable to engage in normal, healthy behaviors. He was born in captivity and what befell his parents, became his life.”

The serval will be temporarily housed at the Audubon Zoo until an “appropriate environment” can be found.